Cruising Toward A Better Tomorrow

Cruising Toward A Better Tomorrow

Philanthropy within the Collector-Car Hobby a Common Theme

You might remember last month’s issue touching on the wonderful world of motor condos, giving just a taste of what these luxury garage and storage facilities can provide to collector-car owners of all different interests. But what they can do for the world outside of condo owners and collector-car enthusiasts is just as exciting and invigorating, and some motor-condo complexes are already showing just how motor condos and the hobbyists who occupy them can make a very real difference in not only the hobby, but in the world around them as well.

Tom Burgess’ Iron Gate Motor Condos in Naperville, Illinois, is one of those motor-condo facilities that has shown just what can happen when compassionate car collectors gather in a community driven to not only celebrate their hobby, but also their ability to help others. Burgess, a collector-car enthusiast and commercial developer, built his first motor condo in 2007 to store his own vehicles. However, he soon realized that something was missing, and that something was a community of like-minded automobile enthusiasts. In 2013, his vision began to become a reality on the 45-acre campus in Naperville that is now Iron Gate Motor Condos, a motor-condo facility with plans to double in size in the coming years.

Burgess said that philanthropy is something that truly runs rampant within the collector-car hobbyists’ community, noting that they’re an especially generous group of people. In turning collector-car events into charity events, Burgess said he thinks it helps to further channel the philanthropist in collector-car enthusiasts while also bringing a greater purpose to why they’re gathering in the first place. “It’s been a win-win,” he said. “Car guys in general are very generous people. When they see a well-run organization in need, their hearts get out the checkbook and the checks get written … I thought, it’s great to be together, but as long as we’re all here, why not just toss a couple of bucks in the hat?